6% said "yes" the author began the discussion in Up Till Now, and will likely now continue it; 11% said "no" the "do I wear a toupee?" line in that book was the final word; 17% chose the joke option - that the entire book will be a point-by-point denial of every single toupee-wearing allegation ever levelled against Bill Shatner! The greatest number, 38%, believed that there may indeed be some subtle coded language for toupee-buffs, but nothing overt.

Thanks for voting!

Incidentally, an examination of the cover of the book (set for release in October) reveals some potential coded toupological imagery. Notice the angle at which Bill Shatner's head is tilted. Exactly the same as the globe he is holding. At the same relative position where Bill Shatner's toupee is, on the globe we find the white patch of the North Pole.

Is Bill Shatner using the power of his toupee to underscore the receding ice line of the Arctic region as caused by climate change? Or the reverse? Who knows...?

Now for some news on our newest poll. In a brief change of format, we're going to give our readers the deciding voice on a question that many of you have been asking, namely "When are you going to do a full toupological analysis of the Trek movies?"

Inexplicably, our toupologists have been dragging their feet, unable to decide (chronologically may seem a little too obvious). So whatever our readers choose, that's the one we'll look at first! Just to note, it's not a poll about which Trek movie is your favorite, but rather of which one you would most like to see a toupological analysis (the wind in III; the water in IV; the newness of the "TJ" in I; the graynessin VI - so many factors to sway your choice!). Happy voting!

I would like an analysis of TMP as well; he really went to fairly drastic means to get himself in shape and looking good for that movie, and the results create quite a unique look for him. I feel his efforts to become physically fit, though, were marred by the choice of toupee, which was too dark and still looked very fake. This is especially in comparison to the Jim Kirk lace, and I really think they made a big mistake in choosing that toup. I wonder what the thought process was behind that choice. The toupee also set a bad precedent for the other movies.

I also vote TMP. That "Stage 1 TJ Curly" apparently was never put on the same way twice judging by the varied looks it has throughout the movie. From a toupological standpoint, it makes for the most interesting study of all the movies (though IV's swimming scene comes in a close second).

It would also be interesting to Photoshop different styles of toupees on the TMP Shat's head. That toupee they chose really couldn't be much worse, especially considering how great he looked otherwise. I bet he would have looked fantastic with a Jim Kirk lace! Putting that crappy toupee they had himnwearing during TMP was such a wasted opportunity.

i stil remember being stunned when shatner stepped out the shuttle at the start of TMP and there it was...

The Italian Kirk.

Admiral Colombo

i still wonder to this day why he didnt just use the JK lace (season 3 style) as it looked just 'Kirk' plus wouldnt have been so obvious a toup (imo thats when the game was up in most peoples eyes - alot of people assumed hed gone bald between TOS and TMP..i know i did until i found out many years later he was actually wearing in TOS...)

couldve been worse i suppose - he couldve stepped out the shuttle wearing a Lost Years special - right out of Horror at 37,000 feet

i really think shatner or got it wrong when it came to the TJ Curly. i know shatner will have wanted to keep up with the fashions and styles and maybe go for that slightly permed Burt Reyonlds fro look (remember Burt was THE biggest movie star in the world in the late 70s/early 80s - bigger than Clooney or whoever is today)

but the Jim Kirk lace he wore in TOS not only looked REAL and fooled just about everyone into thinking it was real hair, it was part of the Kirk character - like the bowl fringe cut was for Spock or the JFK Kennedy cut was for Bones. that blondey brown hair swept back with the lock of hair down the forehead sometimes...it just screamed KIRK!(indeed they even made Chris Pine dye his hair the season1/2 Kirk colour for the 2009 movie). when Shatner stepped out in TMP with the thick (much thicker than in TOS) curly (more so than TOS) jet black fro' people were shocked and the game was immediately up.

i know people age and their hair changes etc but going with the TJ Curly (or at the time 'Columbo' or 'Burt' Curly) in 1979 was too much. itd have been less of a big deal if hed just been wearing the exact same piece as in TOS season 3! (then again its easy to forget Shatner spent 10 years in ratty Lost Years pieces - but for those who didnt keep up with his lO year tv movie and game show output seeing Kirks hair in TMP was a shock). in fact itd have made MORE sense for him to have gone back to the JK Lace as TMP was supposed to be only set about 2 years after TOS!

if shat had gone back to the JK lace i wonder if hed have continued for the sequels? (i notice Trek VI is the closest there is to a JK lace - like an aged season 3 piece)

then again imagine Kirk screaming the "KHHHAAAAAAAN!!" yell wearing a JK lace with the lock of hair strategically placed down the forehead instead of that angry looking thick dark bush sat there ontop. it wouldnt be the same.

regarding the Trek VI piece looking abit more JK Lace than usual (almost a hybrid of the JK lace and a TJ Curly - as if they mated)

perhaps shatner was feeling a degree of nostaliga for TOS days what with it being the final movie (or so he will have thought at the time) and it being the 25th anniversary. even so far as it appearing abit thinner than usual and including a bit of salt and pepper grey there as if to say 'Kirks getting older..i dont mind showing that as its the final film.' (plus to create more illusion - see its real hair...why would i grey a toup?)

but then what of the next film where its thicker and back to a healthy chesnut brown? perhaps shatner didnt like his look in VI and felt as this really is the last movie i shall look my best - no more thinning down and greying up

Ya I would have liked to have seen the JK lace on the Shatner of TMP - I bet he would have looked almost as good as TOS since it was only 10 yrs later... instead the ridiculous (and obvious) TJ Curly early incarnation...

"And while in my lifetime I've seen science make extraordinary inroads into solving the most complex questions of life, after all this time I admit that I am thrilled that there are some things that forever will remain a mystery. For example, do I wear a toupee?"

"May I say that this is the most delightful blog I have discovered in many a moon. It's informative without being cruel, and there's genuine affection for Mr. Shatner. Well done." - A reader's kind comment.

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